Building construction



MalCh 28, W, D TEAGUE ET AL BUILDING CONSTRUCTION Filed Oct. 15, 1941 5Sheets-Sheet 2 Afa 7MB/K ATTORNEYS March 28, D TEAGUE Ef- AL BUILDINGCONSTRUCTION Filed Oct. 15, 1941 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 @ff/f,

l 7*//5/2? ATTORNEYS March 28, 1944. w Q TEAGUE E1- AL 2,345,018

BUILDING CONSTRUCTION Filed Oct. 15, 1941 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 THE/2ATTORNEYS March 28, 1944. w D, TEAGUE ETAL 2,345,018

BUILDING CONSTRUCTION Filed Oct. l5, 1941 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 9 I 4g ./5 WxM a9 4J 4 'Q A? 7 f IL 'nxi/ x f L 0 65 4e 1 /63 Vf if? ff M l I El Z/ lTHE/R ATTORNEYS Patented Mar. 28, 1944 BUILDING GONSTRUCTION WalterDorwin Teague, Annandale, N. J., and Raymond R. Spilman, Bronxville, N.Y.; said Spilman assigner to said Teague Application October 13, 1941,Serial No. 414,700

3 Claims.

This invention relates to prefabricated buildings. In such buildings asheretofore proposed, while some of the parts of the building have beenprefabricated, a considerable amount of actual construction or buildingwork, has been 'necessary at the site.

It is the primary object of the present invention to provide aprefabricated building of generally improved arrangement andconstruction, and especially one in which construction or building workat the site is substantially eliminated, and the work at the siteconsists substantially entirely of assembling the various unitspreviously manufactured at the factory.

Another object of our invention is the provision of a prefabricatedhouse construction which is so arranged as to permit disassembly of thecompleted building so that the parts thereof can be re-assembled on thesame site in a different arrangement, or removed to a different site andre-assembled.

It is also an object of our invention to provide a section or panel forwall, oor, ceiling or roof of improved construction to facilitate andexpedite the assembly and disassembly of such panels.

Another object of our invention is to provide such a panel orunitconstruction which aords ready interchange of panels, particularly wallpanels, so that even after the building is cornled, Windows and doorscan be relocated at An additional object of the invention is to providean improved coupling or joint for securing together the marginal edgesof such panels or sections, either in line with one another or at rightangles to one another, as, for example, in forming partition walls orthe corners of the building.

Although the improvements of our invention are capable of generalapplication in the con@J structing of buildings of various kinds, theyhave been devised for, and the invention will be explained in connectionwith, a type of dwelling house which is adapted for low cost and rapidproduction, such asis required in connection with defence housing nowbeing constructed in various parts of the country. The invention will bedescribed in connection with the accompanying drawings which illustratesuch a house.

In these drawings:

Fig. 1 is a viewv looking down on -the roof of a portion of a houseconstructed in accordance with the invention having part of the roofbroken away and showing the wall construction in horizontal section;

Fig. 2 is an elevation of an interior wall panel; Fig. 3 is a verticallongitudinal section through this panel, taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2 butdrawn to a larger scale;

in the gure.

Fig. 4 is a horizontal transverse section of the panel taken on line 4-4of Fig. 2 drawn to the same scale as Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a floor panel;

Fig. 6 is a transverse vertical section through the iioor panel of Fig.5 taken on line 6-6 of that iigure but drawn to a larger Scale;

Fig. 7 is a plan View of a combined roof and ceiling panel; 1

Fig. 8 is a vertical` longitudinal section of the roof and ceiling paneltaken pn the line 8--3 of Fig 7 but drawn to a larger scale and with thecentral portion broken away;

Fig. 9 is a transverse section taken on the line 9-9 of Fig. 8 alsodrawn to an enlarged scale;

Fig. 10 is a view in side elevation of a series of panels such as shownin Fig. 2 joined together to Aform a typical wall but drawn to anenlarged scale for the purpose of illustrating the joint construction;

Fig. 11 is a cross sectional view taken on the line II-Il of Fig. 10;

Fig. 12 is a partial vertical section taken on the plane indicated -byline l2--l2 of Fig. 1 having parts broken away both horizontally andvertically; f

Figs.y 13 and 14 are somewhat enlarged sectional views of theintersection between the walls shown at the left hand central portion ofFig. 1, Fig. 13 being a horizontal section taken on line I3-I3 of Fig.14, and Fig. 14 being a vertical section taken on line M--M of Fig. 13;

Fig. 15 is a partial Vertical section of the house, similar to the lefthand portion of Fig. 12 but with the partition wall omitted, showing thejoints between the rends of two roof panels and two iioor panels;

Fig. 16 is a vertical section taken on line I 6-16 of Fig. 1 showing ajoint between the sides of two adjacent roof and ceiling panels;

Fig. 17 is a horizontal section taken on the line I'l-l'l of Fig. l2showing a joint between the sides of two exterior wall panels and corrresponding to the joints shown at the lower right hand'side of Fig. 1but drawn to a larger scale;

Fig. 18 is a horizontal section showing the joint between two exteriorwall panels at a corner of the house corresponding to the lower righthand corner of Fig. 1 but drawn to a, larger scale; and

Figs. 19, 20 and 21 are perspective views illustrating three diierentforms of panel spacing and connecting members.

Referring now to the accompanying drawings, there is showndiagrammatically in Fig. 1 a house comprising two exterior side walls Iand 2 and two end walls 3,l only one` of which is included The spacewithin these walls is divided by means of a longitudinal interior wallor partition 4 and by two transverse .interior walls l and 3. Thesection istaken above the windows and doors so that these do not appear.The house is provided with a flat gable roof which slopes away from acentral longitudinal ridge 'I which is directly above the central wall4. The roof covering 3 has been broken away to show the roof structurein the upper hal-i of Fig..1 and both the roof covering and the roofstructure itself have been broken away Iin the lower half of the figureso as to show in section the construction of both the interior andexterior walls.

The floors, exterior walls, interior walls and the ceiling and roof areeach constructed in prefabricated sections or panels, the panels forroof and ceiling including both roof members and ceiling members in asingle structure. All of these panels are rectangular in shape and canbe made in any desired dimensions, but for the type of house in questionthe panels are constructed in a dimensional unit of four feet, that isto say, the panels are all approximately four feet in width and theirlength is a multiple of four` feet. Thus the wall panels areapproxlmately eight feet high, which determines the height of theceiling, and the floor panels may conveniently be made in substantiallytwelve foot lengths, with the roof and ceiling panels of the samelength.

'I'hese panels are arranged side by side and end to end eithervertically or horizontally as the case may be to form walls, floors, androofs and ceilings-of any desired extent. For example, the requirednumber of floor panels are arranged side by side and end to end -in thesame plane to form a desired noor space, while the wall panels aresimilarly arranged to -form the required length of exterior and interiorwalls. The several panels forming a wall, floor or roof are connectedtogether by the novel spacing and connecting members illustrated inFigs. 19, and 21 which serve both to space the: panels apart at least atthe central portions oftheir edges and to connect them together. Thesespacing and connecting members serve to connect the sides of the panelswhen they are arranged in the same plane as, for example, to form a flatwall, or to hold the panels at right angles to one another, as,

for example, at wall intersections and at the joints between the sidewalls, oor, and sills or girders and between the side walls andceilings.

Ihe improved prefabricated house has no frame structure aside from thesills or girders beneath, but the bottoms of the side and interior wallpanels rest upon the floor panels and sills, and the roof and ceilingpanels are supported entirely by the upper .ends of the wall panels. Theimproved construction includes a releasable fastening means by which theedges of the several kinds of panels are secured to the spacing andconnecting members. 'I'hese fastening means are easily manipulated inassembling the house, and a completed building can be just as readilydisassembled should it be desired to make additions thereto or to changethe interior room arrangement, or should it be desired to remove thebuilding to a different location. This disassembly can be carried outwithout defacing the panels or injuring the fastening means so that thesame building can be assembled and disassembled as many times asdesired.

Thai-several kinds of panels out of which the house is constructed are'illustrated in Figs. 2-9, inclusive. The exterior wall panel 9 shown inFigs. 2, 3 and 4 consists of a rectangular marginal framework I0 havinga side 4facing member II on the inside and a thicker facing member l2 onthe outside. Frame III has two side members I3 and I4 which may be ofwood preferably 3 inches by4 inches in cross section as shown in Fig. 3.It also has interconnecting end members I3 and IB and is preferablyprovided at the corners with bracing blocks as indicated for stiftening.Also cross members I1 extend between the side bars I3 and I4 to assistin supporting the facings II and I2 so 'that these facings may be madeof thin material, such, 4for example, as plywood approximately V4 in.thick on the inside and somewhat thicker on the outside. The outsideplywood facing I2 is preferably made of Ilr bonded with aweather-resisting binder such as phenolic resin, for example, while acheaper grade of plywood mayl be used for the interior facing I I suchas gum plywood bonded with urea resin. Within these panels heatinsulating material such as the rock wool illustrated in Figs. 2. 3 and4, or aluminum foil or the like, may be provided.

Both the side frame members I3 and 'Il and the end frame members-I5 andI6 are shaped in' cross section, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, with a atcentral edge face I8, the corners on each side of these flat faces beingrelieved preferably by nat 45 beveled surfaces I9 and 20 on the insideand outside, -respectively, for a purpose which will appear later on.

The iloor panels 2| are constructed on the same general plan but ofheavier materials. The side frame members 22 and 23 and 'the end framemembers 24 and 25 may be made of 3' x 6' wood beams. The cross members26 are more closely spaced than in the wall panels to give addedstrength. The top surface 21 of the floor panel may consist of V2 in.urea bond fir plywood and on the outside a linoleum floor covering 28 ispreferably cemented so that the floor surface will be complete when thepanels are assembled. A layer 29 of heat insulating material, such, forexample, as rock wool, aluminum foil, or the like, may be placed on theinterior of the oor panel resting on the bottom surface 30 which may bemade of V4 in. phenol bonded flr plywood.

Both the side and the end edges of floor panel 2| are provided with flatouter surfaces or faces corresponding to edge faces I8 of the wallpanels 9 but wider on account of the greater depth of the oor panelframe members. The upper corners are relieved in the same way as thecorners of wall panel 9 preferably by 45 beveled surfaces 3I. The widthof these beveled surfaces is the same as the width of beveled surfacesI9 and 20 of the wall panels, and the function of these surfaces willappear in connection with the description of the assembly of the panels.

The combined roof and ceiling panel 32 shown in Figs. 7, 8 and 9comprises a horizontal marginal frame 33, similar to the frames of thefloor and wall panels, and upon which an inclined roofsupportingstructure is superposed. The horizontal marginal frame 33 may beconstructed in any suitable manner, as, for example, by using 1 in. by 4in. planks for both the side members 34 and the end members 35. Theceiling 38, consisting of V4 in. plywood is secured to the bottom offrame .33, and resting on the ceiling a layer 31 of heat insulatingmaterial'such as rock wool or aluminum foil may be provided.

Suitable upright frame members 38, 39 and III secured to the marginalframe 33 support the roof frame structure 4I at any angle desired with lrelation to frame 33 to give the desired pitch tothe roof. The pitch ofthe roof, preferably, is

small in order to save material and also to make vthe individualsectionsl lighter in weight. The roof facing 42 consists of in. plywoodcovering the area of frame 4|.

The area within the roofing and ceiling panel 32 is entirely enclosed bymeans of plywood 'sheathing 43 on the sides and 44 atithe end. 'I'his isdone primarily for strength and stiffening of the panel by the edgewisemounted plywood. It also protects the insulating material 31 within thepaneland forms a dead air space above the insulating material tosupplement it in conserving heat in the wintertime and excluding heat inthe summer. The outer end of the panel near the eaves is closed by theframe member 40.

A ilat edge face 45 at right angles to the ceiling is provided alongeach side of the panel, and a similar face 46 along the inner end, byapplying 1" x 4" wood strips 41 opposite the marginal frame 33 on theoutside of sheathing 43. The lower comer of strip 41 is beveled as shownin Figs. 8 and 9 to correspond with the beveled `surface I9 of the wallpanels. At the outer end of roof panel 32 a strip 49 is secured to framemember 40 so as to thicken this member and provide the at edge 'face 50at this end of the panel. Strip 49 is beveled at 5I along its bottomedge to correspond with the beveling I9 and 20. The roof facing 42 issurfaced on the outside with a layer 48 of rooilng felt preferablyprotected with granulated slate.

The panels forming the interior walls or partitions of the building areconstructed precisely like panel 9 except that the outside face has thesame thickness on both sides and is made of the cheaper gum plywood ureabonded; also the heat insulation is omitted.

So far as the features o`f my invention are concerned which relate tothe connecting'together of the panel members 9, 2| and 32, their variouselements may be secured together in any convenient way, as by the use ofnails, screws, or the like. Our invention includes, however, as one ofits features a novel panel structure which possesses remarkablestrength. This panel structure is desirable, since the house has noframe structure other than the sills, so that the house will befortified to withstand the wrenching stresses produced by Wind pressure,etc. This panel structure involves the utilization of an interior framestructure which extends throughout the entire periphery of the panel andsecuring the lside facing members of laminated wood, such as plywood, tothe frame by uniting the margins of the facing members to the frame by acontinuous bond extending throughout the entire periphery of the panel.Such a bond may be obtained by uniting these surfaces under heat andpressure, utilizing a bonding material of the phenolic resin type. Inthis way the strength of the bond between the frame and the side membersis substantially equal to the strength of the bond between the layers ofthe plywood.

In Figs. 10 and 11 there are shown three interior panels, which areindicated by reference Y numeral 9a, assembled in edge to edgerelationship to form a part of a, typical interior wall. f

Considering the two right hand panels, the panels are joined together bymeans of three spacing and connecting members 52 of a channelshaped typeillustrated in Fig. 19 and mounted in spaced end to end relation in thespace between the edges of the panels.

Each of these spacing and connecting mem- :bers comprises a centralwebportion 53 and two side ilanges 54, a well-known structural steel shapepossessing strength and rigidity and obtainable at low cost. The webportion is provided with two spaced fastening nut apertures 55 and eachof the flanges 54 has a pair of similar apertures 56.y The ilanges 54andweb 53 are of equal' width and this width bears a relation to thethickness of the panels and is such as to cause the beveled corners I9and 20 of adjacent panels to abut against one another when two panelsare connected together at right angles to one another to form a cornerof the house, or at an intersection of two interior walls, or between awall panel and a floor panel or between a wall panel and a ceilingpanel.

For joints where the greatest 'strength is required, such as\at the endsof the floor panels and/at the top and bottom of the exterior wallpanels, a slightly modified flanged spacing and connecting member 51illustrated in Fig. 20 is employed. This is precisely like connectingmember 5,2 except for the presence of a plate 56 parallel with the web53a which ties together; the marginal edges of the flanges 54a. Tieplate58 is secured in place in any suitable manner, as, -for example, by spotwelding.

l The length o f this plate is such as to leave the end portions offlanges 54a adjacent the fastening apertures 56 freely accessible forthe application of the fastening nuts as will appear later.

In Fig. 2l there is illustrated a still further modication oi the angedconnecting member 52 which is utilized at all joints between two wallsonly, either interior or exterior. which are at right angles, such, forexample, as at the corners of the building. This member 59 is a steelshape having two flanges at right angles to one another/and eachprovided with apertures 60 for receiving the fastening nuts.

All three of these forms of flanged connecting members are of the samelength and are short in comparison with the length of the panels, theirlength being, for example, approximately 8 inches. The width of theflanges is the same on all three connecting members and the flanges ofmembers 52 and 51 are of the same width as the web portions 53 and 53aso that the end outline of these two members is square. 'The insertionof the, tie plate 58 between the flanges of member 51 makes this memberinto a box girder which is a shape that possesses great strength.

Returning to the consideration of the two right hand panels 9a of Figs.10 and 11, each of the flanged spacing and connecting members 52 is heldin position between the panels by fastening means consisting of ybolts6I and nuts 62 (Fig. 11). 'Ihe bolts 6I are placed in the panels 9 atthe factory so that the panels are received at the site with these boltsin them. For this reason the bolt holes are bored or drilled in thepanel side frame members I3 and I4 to make a snug ilt with the bolts. Inaddition, to insure that the bolts do not get out of place in transitthey are preferably provided with longitudinal iluting 63 (Figs. 11 and17) which projects slightly from the body of the bolt near the bolt head64.

When the bolts are driven into their holes this iluting cuts its wayinto the wood of the frame members and secures the bolts so that thereis no danger of their being dislocated during shipment of the panels.These boltsA are driven into place before the side facings II and I2 areput onthe panels and the heads 64 of the lbolts engage the innersurfaces of the side frame The spacing of these bolts is determined tosuit the number of anged spacing and connecting members used and to suitthe spacing between the fastening nut apertures. All types of panels 8,9a, 2I and 32 are provided with these bolts. In making the jointsbetween wall panels, any desired spacing of the connecting members ispermissible, and in fact it is not necessary that they be uniformlyspaced, whereas the spacing of the connecting members along the sideedges and end edges of the floor and ceiling panels and along the endedges of the wall panels must be uniform; also the distance from anycorner to the first connecting member must be equal to one-half of thespacing between connecting members. The reason for this is that, in someplaces, as for example,` along the right hand end of the house, as shownin Fig. 1, the ends of the wall panels are connected to the sides offloor and ceiling panels, whereas along the other two sides of the houseillustrated, y the connection of thewall panels is with the ends of thefloor and ceiling panels.

The nuts 62 are provided as shown in Fig. 17- with a head portion forthe application of a wrench and with a body portion 65 at one side ofthe head and preferably in the form of a truncated cone to be forcedinto the apertures of the flanges 54 to make a snug t and also preventthe nuts from loosening.

Enlarged recesses66 (see (Figs. 17, 11 and 3) are provided around thethreaded end portions 61 of the bolts of about the same diameter as theapertures 5S in the flanges of the connecting members and for thepurpose of receiving the conical body portions 65 of nuts 62. Thethreaded. end

portions 51 terminate within these recesses 66 and below the outersurface of the panel frame members. The threads of these bolts arethereby protected from damage during shipment which might otherwise makeit difficult to apply the nuts 62. Bolts 6I and nuts 62 are a standardform of carriage belt and acorn nut and consequently are availablewithout the expense of providing a special type.

In setting up a section of wall, as exemplified in Fig. 10, the firststep is to put the appropriate connecting members in place on one of thepanels and secure them by applying nuts 62 through the apertures in theflanges of the connecting members and screwing them onto the ends ofbolts 6I. The next step is to place the adjacent pane1 in position withthe bolts 6I thereof in alinement with the apertures of the connectingmember flanges and then apply nuts 52 on that side of the connectingmembers. These nuts 62 may readily be put in position with the fingersand then tightened by means of a wrench manipulated through the openside of the channel-shaped connecting members 52, as may be seen inFigs. 11 and 17.

After this is'dcne, filler strips 68 are applied on the opposite sidesof the connecting members 52 so as to close up the joint space betweenthe two panel members and conceal the connecting members. These fillerstrips are preferably made of plywood and have their edges beveled tocorrespond to the beveled surfaces I9 and 2D of the panels. The fillerstrips have been omitted from Figs. 10 and 11 but are shown in Fig. 17.They are held in place by any suitable fastening means such, forexample, as the screws 69. Fig. 17 is a cross section of a verticaljoint between two exterior panels but the vertical Joints between thesepanels are exactly the same asv the Joints between interior 'panelsexcept that the outside filler strip 10iis made to stand the weather,and suitable packing 1I of rubber, for example, is inserted between thebeveled surfaces to assist in excluding moisture.

Utilizing the panel construction and method of panel assembly abovedescribed, the house illustrated diagrammatically in Fig. 1 isassembled. The spacing and connecting members for the floor and roofpanels are applied and the panels connected following procedure which issimilar to that used in-assembling the simple flat wall of Figs. 10 and11. The house is supported upon sills or girders 12 and 13 (Fig. b2)resting upon pillars 14, preferably of concrete, so as to raise thehouse the desired distance 4from the surface of the ground. Sill 12extends centrally of the house beneath the central wall 4 and ridge 1,While one or more sills 13 extend beneath each of the side walls I and 2and each of the end walls 3.

Both sills :l2 and 13 are prefabricated in suitable lengths convenientfor shipment and handllng. Sill 12 is made up of an assemblage of fourbeam sections so as to provide two side horizontal shoulder supports 15for the ends of the floor panels and an upwardly extending centralportion 16 having a flat edge face 11 on which the connecting members 51are secured in endwise spaced relation.

In assembling this girder or sill structure the central portion is madefirst. Two 2" x 4" beams 18 and 19 are secured together by means of two'layers of-plywood, one secured at each side, leaving a space 8lextending lengthwise between the inside edges of these beams. Beforethis, the upper member 19 is 'drilled and recessed for the connectingmember bolts 6 I a and the bolts are put in position. These bolts arelike bolts 6I except for their length. After the assembly of these fourparts is completed, the side members 82, two 2" x 6" wood beams, aresecured to the outside surfaces of the plywood members 8D with the loweredges of members 82 and member 18 in the same plane.

The side sills 13 are constructed in the same way except that only one2" x 6" member 82 is required.

m assembling the house at the site, the side sul 13 and the centralgirder 12 are rst laid on the foundation blocks 14 in accordance'withthe plan of the house and the several sections constituting thesegirders are bolted together at their ends (not shown) so as to provide aunitary foundation' structure.

From Figs. 12 and 1 it will be understood that the house in question isapproximately 24 ft. wide,

which is determined by the placing of the twov floor panels 2l end toend. The iioor panels 2| are then placed in position with their endsresting on the shoulders 'l5 as shown in Figs. l2 and 15.

The nuts 62 at the joints between the inner ends of the panels above thecentral girder 12 are then applied complete and drawn up tight; that isto say, al1 three sets of these nuts, those on the two opposite sideflanges of the connecting members 51 and those at the bottom or web ofthese members. Members 51 are faced upward at the center joints betweenthe panels and, as the interior partition panels formngwall 4 are notyet in place, the interior of the lconnecting members is accessible forthe insertion of the nuts and panels.

the manipulation of the wrench in tightening them. C A

At the outside ends of the oor'panels 2| the connecting members 61 areplaced horizontally so that the openings Ibetween their flanges face*`outwardly. The'nuts 62 in the web and lower flange of each of theseconnecting members y 1 are conseqently inserted next and tightened.

After this is done the outside wall panels 8 and the wall panels 9a,forming the central interior partition A, can be placed in position andthe roof and ceiling panels 32 mounted onthe tops of the wall panels. Incarrying out this assembly the lower edge faces I8 of the -verticalpanels rest on the upper flanges of the connecting members 51 and thebeveled inside edges I9 also rest upon the beveled edges 3l of the floor'I'he same thing is true of the interior wall panels 9a except that herethere are lbeveled surfaces I 9 on both edges to rest upon thesimilarsurfaces I of the two opposed floor panels. These interior panels areheldin place by their weight only.

In placing the roof panels 32 nuts 62 are applied from the outsidebeneath the eaves, the

holding members 51 being horizontal, the same as at the bottoms of theoutside wall panels. At the inner ends of the roof and ceiling panels 32the connecting members 52 are upwardly directed and the nuts 62 areaccessible through a space 83 which exists between the opposite plywoodfacings 4B in the inner ends of lthe roof and ceiling panels. It will beunderstood that this space 83 is open at the time the roof panels areapplied, since the ridge member 1A is not placed in position untillater.

Underthe portions of the ridge 1 where there is no central partitionwall 4 (Fig. 15) a ller strip 84 is used to fill the spaces between thejoints at the inner ends of the floor panels 2l. Also the connectingmembers 52 between the inner ends of the roof and ceiling members 32 arefaced downwardly instead of upwardly so that the nuts 62 are accessiblefrom below, that is,`from within the house instead of from the roof. Aceiling filler strip 85 is used to close this joint and conceal theconnecting members.

A typical joint whichextends between two interconnected roof and ceilingmembers 32 at their sides is illustrated in Fig. l6. The connectingmembers 52 face downwardly as in Fig. l5 and the ceiling joint is closedby a similar ller "strip 85. The roof joint consists of a filler strip86 which is supported on nailing strips 81 provided along the both sidesof the roof panels at .the roof line.

The roofing felt 48 does not extend ilush with the edges of the roofingpanels, but an uncovered margin of about 1/2 inch of the plywood surfacel2 is left exposed. In this way the edges of the rooiing' material areprotected to a considerable extent from being damaged or separated fromthe surface of the plywood during shipment.

`After the roong panels are in place and the illler strips 85 have beeninstalled, strips 88 of .roofing material/are laid lengthwise of thejoints between the sides of the roof panels. Strip 88 is made to overlapthe margins of the roofing material 48 as shown in Fig. 16 and thenmastic 89 such as asphaltum is applied over these overlap- Ding edges.

Along the peaks of the roof panels at the center of the house a plywoodstrip 90is placed and on top of this the ridge 1, which, as illustrated,has a central roll portion and margins wide margins of the roofingmaterial 48. The ridge, member is held inl place by means of nails, ifdeenough to make a substantial overlap with the f 'sired, and by mastic,9| which is applied along the margins. l

t the corners of the building the exterior wall panels 9 are joinedtogether as illustrated in Fig. 18 utilizing the connecting members59(Fig. 21)

Y which are mounted in endwise spaced relation,

. when the nuts 62 are set up so as to form a tight Joint extendingvertically from floor to ceiling.

The corners of the building are completed by means of a illlervstrip92-constructed as shown in Fig. 18 and comprising two strips of plywood83 which are mounted at right angles to one another on a wooden cornermember 94, which is given a cross section as shown on a. routing machineto receive the side strips 93. These filler strips 92 may be secured inplace by means of ,wood screws 95 and preferably rubber sealing strips1I are inserted the same as in the joints shown in Fig. 1

In Figs. 13 and` 14there are shown enlarged views of a-joint between twoyinterior 'walls or partitions, as, for example, either of the two suchjoints shown near the center of Fig. 1. The connecting members 52 aremounted with their web portions 53 on the edge face of the panel whichforms the intersecting wall 5, so that the open side of the connectingmember faces the side of central wall 4 opposite to the partition wall5. In this way the nuts 62 are made accessible either for insertion andtightening or for removal. The joint is closed by means of a fillerstrip 68 (Fig. 17).

In order to finish off the lower portion of the exterior of the houseand protect the outside girders 13 from the weather, sheets 96 ofmaterial such as Transite are placed along the outside surfaces of thesegirderssheets 96 preferably terminate as shown at the lower edge of thehorizontal joint spaces between the side wall panels 9 and the floorpanels 2|. 'Blz'hese joints are covered by an exterior filler strip Bymeans of our invention we have DIOVided a house structure which maybeentirely fabricated in a factory by modern mass-production methodswhich are exactly similar in dimensions and inl frame arrangement as theexterior and interior panels 9 and 9a. All of these exterior panels areinterchangeable and all of the interior panels are interchangeable,permitting an unusual flexibility of plan, fenestration and arrangementof rooms.

Even after a house has been completely assembled, any of the exteriorwall panels can be interchanged at any time. Thus, for example, if awindow or door is desired to be located in a different position, one ofthe blank wallI panels can be removed and a panel containing the windowor door substituted. This can be done from the outside of the housewithout disturbing either the foundation or the roof structure in anyway.

Y It will be understood that although the inven- The upper edges of tionhas been illustrated and described in connection with a house. the samefeatures oi construction and assembly can be employed in connection withother buildings. It-wili also be understood that changes .can be madewithout departing from the spirit of the invention, the scope of whichis set forth in the appended claims.

intheedgeoitheframe.andboltssecuredinsaid holes having their threadedends terminating Within said recesses.

3. As an article oi' manufacture. a panel for a preiabricated buildingcomprising a marginal frame having at least one side facing membermounted thereon, said frame in cross section having an edge tacesubstantially perpendicular to the side racing and having bolt holesarranged thereinin a predetermined spacing and terminating in preformednut-receiving recesses in said edge face, bolts secured in said holeshaving their threaded ends terminating within the said recesses, and atleast one of the corners adjacent said edge face and one side of thepanel being relieved to form a seat on which a member may be placed whenthe panel is assembled in a building.

WALTER DORWIN TEAGUE.

RAYMOND R. BPILMAN.

